Residents speak out at zoning hearing

Thursday

GARDNER — A handful of residents spoke out to oppose or express concern about a zoning rewrite proposal during a joint public hearing held by the City Council and Planning Board this week.

Willis Road resident Paul DeMeo was vehemently against the proposal, saying he thinks the City Council has been misled by the Planning Board and Community Development and Planning Director Trevor Beauregard.

In particular, DeMeo alleged the zoning rewrite was drafted in such a way as to favor a potential senior housing development project on a Betty Spring Road property that abuts his.

“I find it very concerning that things are not transparent to the community,” he said. “I have no faith in the Planning Department or Planning Board as they do not listen to the residents of this community or protect their rights under the zoning ordinance.”

By way of background, the City Council last year agreed to appropriate $48,000 to hire the outside consultant BSC Group to work on the zoning rewrite with a city advisory group, which then took several months to complete.

Beauregard, who served on the advisory group, informed councilors that the last time the zoning ordinance was rewritten was 2006, and that there was a need to update the ordinance again.

The rewrite proposal is over 100 pages and would replace the existing zoning ordinance. Notable changes include a new section for marijuana given state voters have legalized recreational use, and a new section for senior housing.

It has been on the City Council agenda since March and a public hearing on the matter, a requirement under state law, was held in April.

However, because the City Council did not act on the ordinance proposal within 90 days of that hearing, another joint hearing with the Planning Board was required.

In regard to senior housing, the city’s current zoning ordinance only outlines regulations for assisted living facilities.

A continuing care retirement community would include multiple types of senior housing within one campus setting, giving seniors different options as their needs or desires change.

Beauregard has said that senior residential development could take place under the existing ordinance, but the new zoning streamlines the process by specifically outlining the requirements for several different types of development.

DeMeo’s remarks at this latest public hearing went on for at least 15 minutes. His property abuts an about 55-acre property off Betty Spring Road that the company Golden Pond Assisted Living, based in Hopkinton, informed abutting residents in a letter last year it owns and plans to develop as a “senior living community.”

Douglas Noble, who identified himself as the director of operations and development for Golden Pond, included an overview of a proposed development named “Mountainviews of Gardner” that would include 300 rental residences of different types such as independent living and assisted living, and also amenities such as a restaurant and a fitness and wellness center.

DeMeo has submitted multiple public records requests to the city regarding any communication city officials have had with the company on the project.

In March, the city provided DeMeo with emails dating back to last year and early this year in which Noble periodically asks Beauregard for an update regarding the zoning rewrite that was being worked on.

Beauregard’s responses were limited to a brief summary of where the city was at in the process, and did not give any indication that Noble was being given input regarding the substance of the changes.

DeMeo argued those communications show Beauregard and Noble developed a “very friendly relationship” and that it seems the potential project has almost been “given the go-ahead to start work.”

A primary reason DeMeo gave for why he is so opposed to the idea of this project is the size of it and that it would take place in a Rural Residential area, saying it would “destroy the rural characteristics” of the surrounding neighborhoods.

Under the zoning rewrite proposal, a senior residential development proposal such as the one described by Golden Pond in its letter would require a special permit from the Planning Board.

Planning Board Chairman Allen Gross said he has “yet to see any plans for a proposed development off Betty Spring Road.”

Gross described the fact that a developer has reached out to communicate with the planning director (Beauregard) as “normal operating procedure.”

“That’s the department’s job,” Gross said.

Three other residents also spoke at the hearing. Alan Rousseau, who lives on Betty Spring Road and also owns a family camp property on Notre Dame Road, advocated for the city under its zoning to be more protective of residential areas.

He was referencing a zoning petition currently in front of the City Council that would allow for the former Cedar Hills housing development site — which ran into financial trouble and was abandoned over a decade ago — to now be used for the development of solar arrays.

The Cedar Hills land is in a Rural Residential zoning district, and Rousseau’s family camp property abuts it.

The proposed solar development would lead to additional tree cutting, beyond the land previously cleared for the housing development.

The area is off Keyes Road in west Gardner. Princeton Street is close by, and Joan Gould who lives on Princeton Street expressed similar concerns that Rousseau did.

Another Princeton Street resident, Keith Gray, also spoke at the hearing. He said he pays over $5,000 annually in property taxes on his home, but does not think the city looks out for residents, particular when proposed developments are being considered.

“Nothing seems to work for us when the city’s involved,” he said. “All everybody looks at is the money.”

“Don’t let Gardner get screwed. Don’t let the residents get screwed. Protect us and protect yourselves,” he added.

Following the public hearing, the City Council opted to take more time before voting on the zoning rewrite. Councilors have submitted comments to the consultant that worked on the proposal, and the indication is some revisions will be made and reviewed at a later meeting.

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